[Boatanchors] TCS Receiver Revival Updated- Part 1.

[David Stinson]

A couple of people have said they are restoring
TCS receivers. I posted about two I'd done
a little over a year ago. I'm updating and reposting
these notes with some better pictures
in hopes they assist. I will post it in several parts.
Dave S.
(Posted widely because these concepts can
be applied to many BA rigs.)

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Restoring a TCS Receiver
Here are some refurb tips learned "the hard way."
It's a big job and it takes some time, 
but "your patience will be rewarded."
Check everything as you go.
As my Daddy said: "A little time looking 
will save a lot of time cussing."
The TCS receiver was "built to be fixed"
so it's not as intimidating as it seems.

Get yourself some means of keeping 
screws and hardware together. At some points
during the job, you'll have a lot of different types
of screws and hardware piled up. 
A "pen oiler" is invaluable. Dipping a toothpick
in oil to apply it works, kinda... Finding a 
pen oiler is worth the effort.

If you don't have a manual copy, you need 
to get one. It's invaluable, especially for the alignment
procedure. You can find a useable manual copy at:
http://bama.edebris.com/manuals/military/tcs13/
Different models (TCS-12, -13 etc. ) have minor 
differences in where some wires go and in the 
types of IF cans used.
Robert Downs can provide you with a very 
good hard copy at a reasonable price.

Here are the stages of the receiver:
https://goo.gl/photos/jL4XJoNihxx97mUp6

Important:
When you first get your TCS receiver (or transmitter),
do not start twisting the band switch and MO switches.
The band switch, while built "heavy duty," is 75 years
old now. The leaf-spring contacts can get "gunky"
and stick. If you go twisting, they may be bent 
or even broken (learned the hard way). 
This is a common problem with these sets.
We'll cover working them over below.

Remove the radio from its cover.
Place the rig on its back, face up.
Put a drop of oil on each of the cabinet latching
screws to prevent them binding later.
If the latching screws are rusted and won't move,
mix 50/50 Acetone and Automatic Transmission
fluid and give the screws a dose.
They don't like to mix so you'll need to shake
well then apply immediately. Let sit a few hours
and they will likely come loose. Repeat if needed.

Leach De-Ox-It into the toggle switches around
the bat handle and give them a good working.
Do this a couple of times each. 
Use De-Ox-It and a soft toothbrush to gently 
scrub the pins in the power connector. 
De-Ox-it the pots. A drop in the Antenna
Post can help. Check to back of the Antenna
post for good, tight contact.
Use a "pen oiler" to put a drop of oil at the 
shaft of the controls and other mechanical
bearing points to get them moving properly.

Place the rig bottom-up. Remove the screws holding
the cover plate over the RF/Converter/MO section
and remove the plate.
The back panel and side panels can be removed
to allow better access for repairs.
Remove the back panel. Some of the screws
are longer than others. Mark the screw holes
so you can get them back in the proper place.

This next is tedious, but it will pay dividends.
The second most common problem I find these
days with Boatanchor rigs after leaky caps
is Hi-resistance grounds. Screw heads, star
washers and rivets oxidize and no longer conduct
well, or at all. I had an ART-13 on the bench 
that read 1300 Ohms from a ground screw on 
the left side to a ground screw on the right side.

Put on some soothing music, pour your favorite
adult beverage. Go inch-by-inch over the set.
Find every ground point and ground screw you 
can reach and give them a little "tweak." 
If they look cruddy, give them a drop of De-Ox-it.
Inspect and re-heat any suspect solder joints.

Put a drop of De-Ox-It on all the tube pin recepticals.
These old ceramic tube socket individual pin connectors
are made with two parts that are riveted together.
The rivet gets oxidized, losing contact between
the two parts. 
I had trouble with the Converter socket and 
tried to gently, carefully tap the rivets to tighten them.
Big mistake.
The ceramic shattered like an egg shell.
Talk about a pain to fix. That's why I say don't 
mess with the mounting screws on the tube sockets.
De-Ox-It each tube pin receptical, insert
the tube and flex it in a circular motion to work 
the pin socket parts. That's done the job so far.
While you have the tubes out, test them.
Might seem obvious but I've chased my tail for a
day over forgetting this routine step.

Back to the band and Osc. switches:
Carefully inspect each band switch 
and MO switch wiper. 
Here's what they look like (red arrow)
https://goo.gl/photos/ztxA1z6RHboPn4TS7
Use a thin probe or jeweler's screwdriver to 
gently lift the contact wipers to make sure 
they're not stuck.
If none of them stick now, they can still drag,
stick and bend on cruddy adjacent contacts.
Watch for that. 
If you already have a bent one, do not despair.
I managed to straighten my bent one with a
small hemostat and patience.
You can fix it with a few moments observation
and thought. 

Now gently rock the switch back and forth
a little- not actually switching yet. 
Inspect the motion of each wiper, watching
for any "stickiness." Do this for all three bands
and five MO postions. Use brown kraft paper 
soaked in contact cleaner followed by dry paper
to burnish away any crud causing a problem. 
Do not use abrasives on these contacts.
Once you take the time to clean and lube
these switches, they will outlive both of us.

It is unfortunately common to find the tuning
capacitor and its backlash split gears gunked-up 
with old WD-40 or "Billy-Bob's Gooy-Lube" from
1962 or some other such nastyness.
Backlash split gears should be run dry. The bearings
and shafts do need a drop of good grade lube oil
but don't oil or grease the space between the 
split gears.
Get some Ronson Lighter Fluid (naptha, I think)
from WallyWorld. It will do the job for dissolving
and cleaning the goo out of the gears.
I've made a video I hope helps
with this process. I ain't no "movie star" 
but here it is. Try not to laugh too much:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYgCUokEgDg

Next post, I'll cover how to get the IF/BFO/Audio
modules out so you can replace all the dud parts.
Not nearly as hard as it looks.

GL OM ES 73 DE Dave AB5S